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Son of the Sea
Casper has water in his blood, his spirit, and especially in his giant webbed toes. His greatest ambition is to be the youngest person ever to swim the channel. The trouble is, his mum and dad are determined to ‘protect him’ from the allure of the waves (whatever that means!) and time is running out.
But when a freak accident hospitalises his parents, Casper’s sent to stay with a grandmother he’s never met in the magical seaside town of Corallium … but can he unravel the mysterious link between himself, Corallium and the ocean?
But when a freak accident hospitalises his parents, Casper’s sent to stay with a grandmother he’s never met in the magical seaside town of Corallium … but can he unravel the mysterious link between himself, Corallium and the ocean?
- GenresMiddle Grade
320 pages, Paperback
Published May 11, 2023
About the author
Richard Pickard
2 books6 followersRichard has always loved spending time by the sea. Although he grew up in Hertfordshire his grandparents live on the south coast, in Sussex and Dorset, where much of the inspiration for his stories has been found. Whether writing, sunbathing, or sheltering from the rain with a mug of tea, the family beach hut in Bournemouth has always been one of his happiest places.
Richard's debut novel, The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy, won the inaugural Times/Chicken House Chairman's Choice Award in 2019. His love of storytelling started at a young age, through a passion for literature but also for cinema. Two of his greatest childhood influences were Roald Dahl and Tim Burton, who both possess a wickedly dark sense of humour.
Richard's debut novel, The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy, won the inaugural Times/Chicken House Chairman's Choice Award in 2019. His love of storytelling started at a young age, through a passion for literature but also for cinema. Two of his greatest childhood influences were Roald Dahl and Tim Burton, who both possess a wickedly dark sense of humour.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 22, 2023
Another lovely sea-themed book from Richard Pickard. After his landlocked parents are injured in a bizarre cheese accident, young Casper Delmare goes to stay with his estranged granny in a peculiar seaside town. Here he can at last train to achieve his dream of being the youngest to swim the English Channel. But channel-swimming turns out to be more of a cutthroat business than you might think… Packed with eccentric characters and oozing with mystery, this delightful story has humour, heart, and pulls off LGTBQ+ representation without sensationalising it. Wonderful!
May 28, 2023
After the fantastically fishy The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy comes this colourful, coral-ful story of a young boy with webbed feet who dreams of swimming the English Channel. This world of Corallium is richly and video vidly described and really sets the scene for a story about inclusion, belonging and learning to be yourself.
October 28, 2023
Summary:
Son of the Sea follows 11-year-old Casper, an ambitious boy who wants to be the youngest person to swim the English Channel. He is drawn to the water, which he believes is to do with large, webbed feet, so he believes himself a natural born swimming champion…the only problem is that he has supposedly never seen the sea and his parents go to great lengths to keep him from it and make him hide his ‘abnormality’. Determined, Casper sneaks into his neighbour’s pond and even the fountain outside the supermarket to paddle. It was on such an occasion, his mother and father became injured in a freak accident (involving a rather precarious wheel of cheese), meaning he was sent to live in the seaside town of Corallium with the grandmother that he didn’t even know existed! Near the channel at last, Casper trains as hard as he can, making new friends, learning about his past and even the mystery of the little town itself.
The Specifics of the Edition:
I read the standard paperback, which can be purchased from most book places for £7.99. It was published by Chicken House in 2023, so includes a useful “try it” page, as well as a three-word summary: funny, seaside and mystery.
My thoughts:
Son of the Sea was a humorous tale, constantly flipping between magical realism and the eccentrically bizarre. Humour was dispersed throughout the book, suiting the age range well, as at times the humour was utterly crazy(!), but highly entertaining and kept you wanting to read on. Being around 300 pages, it was an element I think would captivate a younger reader and keep them interested in the story. The chapters were slightly longer than the last Chicken House book I read, but I don’t think this would put a reader off, as the prose is easy to read and flows well. The characters were all fabulous in their own ways, with wonderful names (eg, Baby Face Bernie) and complicated motivations.
The theme of shame seemed to play a large role within this work, shame about who you are. I see this book being something a reader can relate to if they too have something they feel they need to hide from others, even those that they are close to. This is a heavy topic for a children’s book, I don’t believe a younger reader would pick up on this as keenly, as the protagonist was not as overtly ashamed of himself, simply acting how he had been taught to, but older readers likely will be able to read between the lines here a little more. This is what I admire about pre-teen/middle grade books, as so many do not shy away from approaching important and somewhat difficult topics in such a tactile manner.
Read the rest here: https://thesilentreviewerblog.wordpre...
Son of the Sea follows 11-year-old Casper, an ambitious boy who wants to be the youngest person to swim the English Channel. He is drawn to the water, which he believes is to do with large, webbed feet, so he believes himself a natural born swimming champion…the only problem is that he has supposedly never seen the sea and his parents go to great lengths to keep him from it and make him hide his ‘abnormality’. Determined, Casper sneaks into his neighbour’s pond and even the fountain outside the supermarket to paddle. It was on such an occasion, his mother and father became injured in a freak accident (involving a rather precarious wheel of cheese), meaning he was sent to live in the seaside town of Corallium with the grandmother that he didn’t even know existed! Near the channel at last, Casper trains as hard as he can, making new friends, learning about his past and even the mystery of the little town itself.
The Specifics of the Edition:
I read the standard paperback, which can be purchased from most book places for £7.99. It was published by Chicken House in 2023, so includes a useful “try it” page, as well as a three-word summary: funny, seaside and mystery.
My thoughts:
Son of the Sea was a humorous tale, constantly flipping between magical realism and the eccentrically bizarre. Humour was dispersed throughout the book, suiting the age range well, as at times the humour was utterly crazy(!), but highly entertaining and kept you wanting to read on. Being around 300 pages, it was an element I think would captivate a younger reader and keep them interested in the story. The chapters were slightly longer than the last Chicken House book I read, but I don’t think this would put a reader off, as the prose is easy to read and flows well. The characters were all fabulous in their own ways, with wonderful names (eg, Baby Face Bernie) and complicated motivations.
The theme of shame seemed to play a large role within this work, shame about who you are. I see this book being something a reader can relate to if they too have something they feel they need to hide from others, even those that they are close to. This is a heavy topic for a children’s book, I don’t believe a younger reader would pick up on this as keenly, as the protagonist was not as overtly ashamed of himself, simply acting how he had been taught to, but older readers likely will be able to read between the lines here a little more. This is what I admire about pre-teen/middle grade books, as so many do not shy away from approaching important and somewhat difficult topics in such a tactile manner.
Read the rest here: https://thesilentreviewerblog.wordpre...
June 14, 2024
It took me a bit to get into this book, but after a few chapters I was eventually hooked. At first I found it verbose and clunky, and the OTT-ness of the storyline wasn’t doing it for me.
But once I realised the outlandishness was in the same vein as a Terry Jones (or as the publisher describes it, Roald Dahl) style story, it was easier to get on board.
What I really enjoyed about this book was the deep intergenerational relationships. I also love the eye catching cover artwork. Appropriately whimsical and full of the sea!
I would probably be interested to read more from this author.
But once I realised the outlandishness was in the same vein as a Terry Jones (or as the publisher describes it, Roald Dahl) style story, it was easier to get on board.
What I really enjoyed about this book was the deep intergenerational relationships. I also love the eye catching cover artwork. Appropriately whimsical and full of the sea!
I would probably be interested to read more from this author.
June 10, 2025
This is a delightful little book we picked up in the library, suggested for my son, but turned down because it wasn't Harry Potter. I was intrigued by the premise: A boy with webbed feet who has never seen the sea is kept away from water as much as possible by his parents, despite his dream of being the youngest person to ever swim the English channel. When they are injured in an accident, he goes to stay with his Grandma Ida in the beautiful town of Corallium, by the sea. He identifies a strange connection between him, Corallium and the water.
It is simply written, about the joys of swimming and being in the water, and an allegory about keeping a fundamental part of yourself hidden from the world, until you can come to terms with sharing it.
It is simply written, about the joys of swimming and being in the water, and an allegory about keeping a fundamental part of yourself hidden from the world, until you can come to terms with sharing it.
October 23, 2023
This is the second book I’ve read by this author and I’ve realised he has a very specific style of writing. This is a style I have come to appreciate and love. This book was amazing. It was filled with so much hope and love. I loved the mix of some mythology, history and passion.
May 11, 2023
Quirky, cute, queer marine middle-grade madness
November 26, 2023
A lovely story about a boy discovering where he belongs and accepting who he really is. Particularly enjoyable if you love being in or next to the sea. A great chapter book for young readers.
July 10, 2025
Really good and enjoyable
Did Not Finish
August 5, 2025DNF
May 25, 2024
This middle-grade is about a boy's determination to swim the channel, despite his parents' determination to keep his away from any water.
Casper has been told his webbed feet a secret. His parents have also gone to much trouble to keep water away from him; they only drink from fruit and vegetable juices, and he can only shower in the rain. Until his parents are involved in an unfortunate accident and the closest next of kin who can look after him is his grandmother, who lives by the sea.
Thoroughly enjoyable. It has many elements that keeps you turning the pages: the mystery of his webbed feet, his determination to swim the channel, the magical and historic seaside town. What I also love about this story is the underlying message : Be yourself. There’s no need to hide even if you think you are different. Be true to yourself and follow your heart.
Casper has been told his webbed feet a secret. His parents have also gone to much trouble to keep water away from him; they only drink from fruit and vegetable juices, and he can only shower in the rain. Until his parents are involved in an unfortunate accident and the closest next of kin who can look after him is his grandmother, who lives by the sea.
Thoroughly enjoyable. It has many elements that keeps you turning the pages: the mystery of his webbed feet, his determination to swim the channel, the magical and historic seaside town. What I also love about this story is the underlying message : Be yourself. There’s no need to hide even if you think you are different. Be true to yourself and follow your heart.
May 14, 2023
This is a brilliantly quirky story with family and friendship at its core. The characters are full of personality, and there were some really funny moments throughout! The story builds to a dramatic conclusion, and there’s a strong message of self-acceptance and what you can achieve when you embrace who you are. A fantastic read!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews